Is worrying a sin according to Matthew 6:34?

Question

Matthew 6:34

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Is worrying a sin? If it is not a sin, then what is it? Is everything that the Bible says not to do a sin?

Answer 1

The full passage in question starts at verse 19, but particularly from verse 25. Over nine verses Jesus gives examples as to the futility of worrying about matters such as what to eat or drink or wear, leading up to his faith-inducing promise:

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (vs. 33)

Then comes the verse you ask about. Try reading it in conjunction with Romans 14:16-22, which tells Christians not to stumble others by what they eat or drink,

“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men. …But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats [when his conscience troubles him about that particular food] because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.” [Emphasis mine.]

Do you see the connection between seeking God’s kingdom and his righteousness, and not worrying about what we eat or drink? That we eat and drink to please God, indeed, that everything we do is done in faith, to honour God. But worry in this context is a form of doubt which is lack of faith. And lack of faith is sin. We have been promised to have the necessities of life if we put the kingdom of God and his righteousness first in our lives.

The promise is conditional. If we have the faith to put God, his kingdom, and his righteousness first, we have no cause to worry about what we will eat, drink or wear. We trust that the necessities will be supplied by God if we are faithful. To trust is to have faith. But lack of faith is lack of trust in God which is a sin. Worry is evidence of lack of faith according to what Jesus said in Matthew chapter 6.

Answer 2

G3307 μερίζω (merízō): to apportion, to divide, to disunite

G3308 μέριμνα (mérimna) from 3307: the state of being concerned and preoccupied, through the idea of distraction

G3309 μεριμνάω (merimnáō) from 3308: worry, concern, preoccupy

G3309 appears many times in the NT.

Matthew 6:25

Therefore I tell you, do not <3309> about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.

Luke 10:41

"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are <3309> and upset about many things"

1 Corinthians 7:32-34 I would like you to be free from <3309>. An unmarried man is <3309> about the Lord's affairs—how he can please the Lord.

It is not a sin to <3309> to please God.

But a married man is <3309> about the affairs of this world—how he can please his wife—and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is <3309> about the Lord's affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is <3309> about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband.

Philippians 2:19-21 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine <3309> in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own things, not those of Jesus Christ.

Above too, <3309> is used positively, not a sin.

Philippians 4:6

Do not be <3309> about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Is worrying a sin according to Matthew 6:34?

The English concept of worrying is not a good thing. The Greek original concept of G3309 is ambiguous. It could mean worry or concern. It could be a good thing.

Another ambiguous word is G3985. Jesus G3985 Philip in John 6:6

He asked this only to test [G3985] him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.

On the other hand, according to James 1:13, God does not G3985 anyone:

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt [G3985] anyone;

The same Greek word can mean tempt or test depending on the context.

Answer 3

One of the key takeaways from the passage you quoted (Matt 6:34) is how Christ ends that passage: “Sufficient for the day its own trouble” – meaning, besides (a) everyday has its own burden of troubles to worry about (b) why even worry about tomorrow, of which you have no clue (you can’t even add an hour to your life yourself, for who knows, you may die today – paraphrasing verse 27)? So, (c) have faith that God will resolve.

Compare this passage with what Paul talks about in Romans 8, the “suffering of present time”; that, it is not worth comparing with the future glory. Yet, here he testifies that because of our weakness we do "groan too deep for words" (verse 26). In other words, being anxious and worrying are our expression of crying for help, in a way. Hence, not sure how this act is sinful!

I understand that many believers quote Romans 14 for justifying "worrying is sinful". But compare this with Christ’s reasoning for not to worry for daily bread, which I mentioned above: worrying for “what to eat” and “what to wear” as an act of “little faith”, i.e., is this same as what Paul is calling as sin? No it is not! According to Calvin, this passage (Romans 14:23) is not a blanket statement – this is about works that does not stand “being right before God”, meaning, a character of mind that is vacillating without a clear consciousness, especially when it stumbles a weaker brother, hence it is a sin! Also, note how Paul juxtaposes two contrasting statements next to each other here, and qualifies the former as blessed, while the later as acting without faith and therefore a sin!

“Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth. And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” – Romans 14: 22-23

My 2 cents, for both your questions.

Answer 4

Is worrying a sin according to Matthew 6:34?

Nowhere in the Bible does it equate worry to sin. But it does admonish us to have trust and the effect worry or anxiety can have on us.

The article "Anxiety" in the Insight on the Scriptures, under the subheading "Avoiding Undue Anxiety", talks about how we should not worry or be anxious but have trust in Jehovah God:

Implicit trust in Jehovah’s loving concern for the welfare of his servants can help one to avoid giving in to needless worry. (Jer 17:7, 8) Jesus Christ made the same observation in his Sermon on the Mount. He concluded his counsel regarding anxiety with the words: “Never be anxious about the next day, for the next day will have its own anxieties. Sufficient for each day is its own badness.” (Mt 6:25-34) For a Christian, there are enough problems each day without one’s adding to them by anxiety over what might happen the next day and may, in fact, never take place.

In a previous paragraph, the article discusses the detrimental effect on our faith:

Far more serious is the spiritual harm to which undue anxiety may lead. Jesus Christ indicated that appreciation for “the word of God” can be completely choked out by worry over the problems that are often part of life in the present system of things. Just as thorns can stop seedlings from reaching maturity and bearing fruit, so such anxiety can prevent spiritual development and the bearing of fruitage to God’s praise. (Mt 13:22; Mr 4:18, 19; Lu 8:7, 11, 14) Because of having permitted these worries to dominate their lives, to the exclusion of spiritual interests, many will find themselves in a disapproved state before the Son of God upon his return in glory, to their everlasting loss.​—Lu 21:34-36.

Answer 5

Focus on... Fear? Law? Faith? God? Love?

Matthew 6:34 -- Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Is worrying a sin?

It is. It is fear, which is the opposite of faith. Worry is fear that has taken the stage, and the spotlight! But what we focus on just gets bigger in our sight. This is why we are instructed to "Magnify The Lord." When we set our eyes on Him, He becomes bigger -- in our sight. We are not actually making God bigger mind you, we are just starting to actually see how BIG He really is. When we worry, we instead magnify our problems, and minimize God as He relates to our problems. "I will enter His gates with thanksgiving. I will enter His courts with praise". Use your words to give thanks and magnify the Lord, and you will push worry off the stage, and out of the spotlight and appear before the Master of The Universe (when I talk like this, I picture He-Man!). Then make your request made known. Jesus is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. He holds the keys of death, Hell, and the grave. And his Father is Master of The Universe!

Stop worrying about worry! ;-) All the law is summarized in one word: Love. But more specifically, Love God First, Love other people Second, and Love Yourself Third. That's it! And if you busy yourself about loving God and your needy neighbors, you'll be too busy being the Bride of Christ to worry about worry. And God, the Perfect Husband, will always care for His Bride! :-)

If it is not a sin, then what is it?

It is actually a good indicator of your spiritual condition, and an indicator of the percentage that you are actually walking with God. Walk with God more, and you will worry less. This is because as you make yourself more fully owned by Him, will not God care for his posessions? His wife? As Enoch walked with the Lord, do you think that he worried one iota? But we instead expect God to walk with us, and that's not how it works. "Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me" Jesus says. Do this, and you will not worry. Read books by contemporary martyrs for encouragement: Richard Wurmbrand, "The Heavenly Man" brother Yu, Petti Wagner "Murdered Heiress, Living Witness."

In this end-times, fear wants to rule you. Choose Love as the better master. And perfect Love casts out all fear. The more you Love, the less you will worry... naturally! (without worrying about it ;-)! When you choose Love, then it's Love that throws fear out of the door -- you don't even have to do anything!

Is everything that the Bible says not to do a sin?

King David ate the leftover bread of consecration, which He was not struck dead for. It is so much more about relationship, than about sin and laws or rules, and following those. Even if you follow all of the rules, you'll get there only to find that you haven't... actually... followed... all... of them... Oh, it's still good to know what the rules are. We are still called to aim for perfection. It used to be "follow the law, all the do's, and all the don'ts". Now it's just, follow the one rule: "Deny yourself (say no to your selfishness), take up your cross (embrace sacrificial love according to my growth program), and follow me (Jesus) by implementing Love, according the Kingdom of Heaven, and bear Fruit that will Last, eternal fruit... And I (Jesus) will take care of everything else... For I have already paid for every broken-rule, every failure, every moment of worry, for your entire life! Now get up and fight! and make a difference in this war, this end-times-battle, where souls are at stake!"

Beware! Study the rich young ruler who followed almost all the rules and thought he had made it, yet his riches owned his heart, as Jesus showed when he cut right to the crux of his issues. Give your heart to God, and let God own your heart, for he is The Good Shepherd, the Good Gardener, the perfect Husband. For it is written that many will say "Lord, Lord" didn't we do many miracles in your name? And I'm sure they will say that they followed all of the rules. and Jesus will say, "Leave, you lawless-ones". They failed to follow the most important law -- the 11th commandment, the law of Love. The goats never loved the "Jesus" right next to them, homeless, in the jails, in the hospitals.

Love. Ejects. Worry.

Answer 6

Let us be extremely careful in this territory. Recall that just being human is sinful, Rom 3:10-18. ALL of us are in a desperate situation and our very sinfulness prevents us from seeing how sinful we are and how much we need our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Ps 51:5-7, 10 - Surely I was brought forth in iniquity; I was sinful when my mother conceived me. Surely You desire truth in the inmost being; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. ... Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

Part of our sinful condition is worrying and fearing; both of which we are told not to do!

• "Fear not": Isa 8:12, Matt 10:28, Ex 20:20, Isa 44:8, Judges 6:10, etc
• "Do not be anxious": Pil 4:6, Matt 6:34, Mark 13:11, Luke 12:26, etc.
• "little faith": Matt 16:8, 8:26, 14:31, 17:20, James 2:4, etc
• "do not doubt": James 1:6, Matt 28:17, Rom 14:23, Luke 24:38, etc.

Thus, even a lack of trust and faith in God is part of our sinful condition. But God is kind and patient because all these things are part of the sinful human condition - doubt, fear, anxiety are all shunned but never condemned.